Drop your presidential bid, support Tinubu, Kaduna APC tells Atiku

The Kaduna State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race and support President Bola Tinubu, asserting that the North has clearly demonstrated its preference for the incumbent.

According to the party, the massive turnout at the APC presidential campaign flag-off in Kaduna on Saturday proved that Atiku can no longer rely on northern votes to push his presidential ambitions.

The APC State Publicity Secretary, Mohammed Sani Haruna, made the call on Monday during a press briefing in Kaduna, where he described the crowd at the rally as overwhelming evidence of growing support for Tinubu across the region.

Haruna urged Atiku to align with Tinubu in the interest of national unity, recalling what he described as the President’s past political gesture toward the former Vice-President.

“It is on record that President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu did Atiku Abubakar a favour by giving him a platform in 2011 to contest for the presidency of Nigeria,” Haruna said.

He argued that Atiku should reciprocate that gesture by supporting Tinubu rather than seeking another bid for the nation’s top office.

“There is no better time to align with Mr. President and show his patriotism for Nigeria than now—to work for the greater interest of the country,” Haruna added.

The APC spokesperson also advised Atiku, who is approaching 80 years of age, to drop his presidential ambition, warning that another failed attempt could expose him to further political embarrassment.

He noted that the Kaduna rally had shattered opposition expectations of securing dominant support in the North, a zone long considered central to Atiku’s electoral calculations.

Haruna accused Atiku and other opposition figures of exploiting ethnic, religious, and regional sentiments to court northern voters, rather than highlighting tangible contributions to the region’s development.

Addressing claims circulating on social media that crowd footage from the rally was generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and that attendees were paid to be there, the party spokesman dismissed the allegations as baseless.

He insisted that the turnout was purely organic, pointing out that thousands of supporters arrived early and waited patiently for hours to gain entry.

“People slept over at the venue. People queued as early as 4:00 a.m. to gain access into the stadium. You cannot buy that kind of sentiment,” he emphasized.